There are two priests stationed at the church—­the Rev. James Taylor and the Rev. Joseph Pyke.  Father Taylor, the principal, is a blooming, healthy, full-spirited gentleman.  He is a “Fylde man;” has in him much strong straight-forwardness; looks as if he had never ailed anything in his life; doesn’t appear to have mortified the flesh very acutely; seems to have taken things comfortably and well since the day of his birth; has not allowed his creed to spoil his face—­a trick which some professors of religion are guilty of; and is, on the whole, a genuine specimen of the true John Bull type.  Father Taylor’s first mission was at Lancaster, under the late Dean Brown; afterwards he came to St. Augustine’s, Preston, where he remained four and a half years; then he was appointed Catholic chaplain at the House of Correction; and subsequently he took charge of his present mission.  He is an active man, and works very hard in his district.  As a preacher he is energetic, impetuous, and practical—­speaks plainly and straight out, minces nothing, and tries to drive what he considers to be the truth right home.  He has very little rhetorical action, hardly moves at all in the pulpit, stirs neither head nor hand except upon special occasions; but he has a powerful voice, he pours out his words in a strong, full volume, and the force he has in this respect compensates for the general immobility he displays during his discourses.

His colleague—­the Rev. J. Pyke—­is a small, mild gentleman, unassuming in manner, cautious, careful, quiet, precise, and, whilst attending to his duties regularly, he makes no bluster about them.  He was ordained at the Church of the English Martyrs, in September, 1868.  In the pulpit he is earnest, clear, and regular in his remarks.  He makes no repetitions, flings himself into no attitudes, assumes no airs, but proceeds on to the end steadily and calmly.  Both the priests named live close to the church, in a building which forms part of the property of the mission.  It is intended some time to have a proper presbytery, near the church:  one is included in the original plan; but shortness of funds bars its erection.  The work thus far executed—­the church, vestries, &c.—­has cost about 8,000 pounds, and there still remains upon the buildings a debt of about 4,000 pounds.  There are no schools in connection with the church; but it is expected that there will be by and bye.  The land formerly used as the cattle market, and situated near the church, has been bought for this purpose, and collectors are now engaged in raising money towards the erection of the schools.  The church has two or three “guilds,” the female members thereof numbering about 200, and the males 100.  In the “district” there are about 3,000 Catholics, including 700 children under 10 years of age; so that the priests in charge of it have quite enough on hand for the present.  A mission in debt to the tune of 4,000 pounds; a church to internally complete—­for much yet remains to be finished in the one described; a church tower which will cost 2,000 pounds to raise; a presbytery to begin of; schools, which are primarily essential, to erect; and 7,000 human beings to look after, constitute what may fairly be termed “no joke.”